MEMPHIS, TN - MARCH 27: Jonny Flynn #10 of the Syracuse Orange looks to pass the ball against the Oklahoma Sooners during the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament South Regionals at the FedExForum on March 27, 2009 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Joe Murphy/Getty Images)

Top NBA draft prospect Ricky Rubio, of Spain, looks on during an interview before the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Thursday, June 25, 2009 in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Well, I was following along just fine. Everything appeared to be going splendidly for the Timberwolves in the NBA draft Thursday night. Ricky Rubio fell right into their laps at No. 5. Then with the No. 6 pick, I was sure they would select Stephen Curry, the best pure shooter in the draft.

That would help plug two huge holes, because the team desperately needs help at both backcourt positions. Yeah, those two rookies would make their share of mistakes. But a few years down the road, the team should be sitting pretty.

Then … I don’t know what happened. Maybe Wolves President David Kahn took a call from Kevin McHale. Instead of Curry, Kahn took another point guard in Jonny Flynn.

That was, uh, puzzling. Flynn is a very good player. Under any other circumstances, he would be a terrific pick at No. 6. But Rubio needs the ball. That would make Flynn a 5-foot-11 shooting guard.

Kahn called Rubio an “orchestra leader.” He added that Flynn “has a lot of scoring attributes.”

Golden State jumped on Curry with the next pick, no doubt offering up a sacrifice to the basketball gods in thanksgiving. The Warriors had to be tickled.

Some had doubts about Kahn’s strategy. ESPN draft commentator Dick Vitale announced that all the teams that passed on Curry would be sorry. Vitale insisted Curry would be a star and the NBA rookie of the year. He particularly scolded Minnesota for passing on him. OK, if it weren’t coming from a buffoon it would mean a lot more. Still, there could be some truth there.

At first, we thought Kahn had a trade up his sleeve. After all, he had just sent his two top shooting guards to Washington. Randy Foye and Mike Miller saw the bulk of the action at that position for the Wolves last season. As near as I can tell, someone named Bobby Brown currently sits at the top of the Wolves’ depth chart at that position. That’s because he is the only veteran two-guard left on the roster. And he’s not even a true shooting guard.

But Kahn quickly sent word that he planned to keep both players, giving examples of how two point guards have co-existed in the same backcourt — Michael Jordan and John Paxson, for instance.

Things quickly took a turn for the worse, however. In his conference call with the Minnesota media, Rubio didn’t sound at all sure that he would be playing here next season. He kept saying this year or next year.

“I’m not sure,” he said. “We’re going to see.”

First among his concerns is the big buyout he would have to pay his current employer in Spain. Second was playing time. “I want to play minutes,” he said.

He was well aware that the Wolves took Flynn with the next pick. Flynn, meanwhile, was as surprised as anyone.

“It caught me off guard,” said Flynn, who was much more positive about the situation.

Flynn said he was going to talk to Rubio and say, “Let’s make this happen!”

In any event, Kahn said he would have taken Flynn even if he were sure Rubio would be here this season.

“We love Jonny Flynn!” he said.

I still think Curry was the correct pick. Flynn, unless he or Rubio is earmarked for somewhere else, was a luxury where the team had a need. It’s like ordering two pork chops and no vegetables for dinner.

Kahn’s response was that he wasn’t going to be able to rebuild the team through one draft. This, he said, was just a start. I follow that. But I still would have taken Curry and spread out the rebuilding a little bit.

Of course, the Wolves took another point guard, Ty Lawson, with the No. 18 pick. But they were quick to send word down that they weren’t keeping him. That was good because, for a minute there, we thought Kahn had gone batty.

Basically, they drafted him to send to Denver in exchange for a first-rounder in 2010. It wasn’t until the 28th overall pick that the Wolves took a two-guard in Wayne Ellington. This all could make sense down the road. Perhaps Rubio and Flynn really can play together. Maybe Rubio stays in Spain for another year and Flynn runs the show. An evening that started as a slam-dunk got awfully iffy by the time darkness had set in. At least they have two good players, even if they do play the same position.

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